Louise Christian Mowery

When Louise was 15 years old her stepfather died suddenly, and she was forced to drop out of high school to help her mother manage a hotel in downtown Amarillo. She never had the opportunity to go back to school, but she earned her GED when she was 57.

She met her husband, Kenneth Lavon Mowery, at a high school football game. As she told the story, she heard someone say “Come on Mowery!” so she started cheering “Go Mowery!” She was embarrassed when someone told her, “Mowery is on the bench,” but that led to them meeting, and they were married on February 21, 1946.

Shortly after their wedding he was deployed to Okinawa, Japan, as a part of the occupying forces at the conclusion of World War II, and she lived with her in-laws during that time. They had been married for 52 years when he died in 1998. Kenneth and Louise had four children: Teddy, Kay, Ken, and Mike. They spent the early years of their marriage moving between Dumas and Amarillo before settling in Dumas in 1957 where they lived until 1984 when they moved to Arlington, Texas. After Kenneth died, Louise continued to live in Arlington until 2018 when she moved to the Pavilion Nursing Home in Mansfield, Texas, where she died.

Louise was a homemaker who was devoted to raising her children, and she also worked periodically to help support her family. After her children were older she worked for several years for Gifford Hill Irrigation Company before starting to work at Texas Farm Bureau, where she continued to work at least part-time until she was in her eighties. She also earned her real estate license. She was an avid reader, and continued to read voraciously until she had a stroke in 2018. She loved watching sports and rarely missed a football, basketball, or baseball game if her children, grandchildren, or great-grandchildren were playing. She also loved to fish, and often caught more fish than her husband. She loved to play the piano and sang in her church’s senior adult choir for many years.

When Louise was 12 years old, a lady named Mrs. Roush started taking her and several other children in the neighborhood to Sunday School at a Methodist church in Amarillo. This is when Louise became a believer in Jesus Christ. As a young married couple, Kenneth and Louise started attending a Baptist church in Amarillo. During this time as a young adult, her brother-in-law, Preston Haile, felt led to encourage her to be fully devoted to the Lord, and that conversation was instrumental in causing her to begin taking her faith more seriously. Kenneth and Louise became members of the First Baptist Church of Dumas, Texas, where she actively served in many capacities, including teaching Sunday School for many years. When she moved to Arlington, they joined Fielder Road Baptist Church where she attended and served as long as she was physically able. While she loved to read many things, she was first and last a person of one book, the Bible. She had a heart to serve others and became a prayer warrior for her family and many others.

She was preceded in death by her mother and father, her brother, Luis, her sister, Lavona, and her husband, Kenneth. She is survived by her daughters, Teddy Forrester, of Lake Oswego, Oregon; Kay Klenzendorf and husband, Bob, of Mansfield, Texas; sons Ken Mowery and wife, Annette, of Greeley, Colorado; and son, Mike Mowery and wife, Mary Beth, of Grapevine, Texas. She is also survived by 8 Grandchildren: Rob Beuhler and wife, Kate, of Frisco, Texas; Kim Jack and husband, Jim, of Arlington, Texas; Kylie Minne and husband, Chad, of Keenesburg, Colorado; Tyler Mowery and wife, Kelsey, of Greeley; Tara Mowery of Windsor, Colorado; Zac Mowery, and wife, Meredith, of Southlake, Texas; Colby Mowery, and wife, MJ, of St Louis, Missouri; Shelby Westerman, and husband, Tommy, of Lubbock, Texas.

She is also survived by 16 Great Grandchildren: Chandler Buehler of Frisco; Ashleigh Buehler of Frisco; Alex Jack and wife, Mary, of McKinney, Texas; Avery Hollabaugh and husband, Aaron, of Smyrna, Georgia; Landon Jack of Arlington; Sam Jack of Arlington; Noelle Minne of Grapevine; Mikel Minne of Keenesburg; Tatum Mowery of Southlake; Ella Mowery of Southlake; Audrey Mowery of Southlake; Cole Mowery of Southlake; Soleil Mowery of St Louis; Alba Mowery of St Louis; Elliott Westerman of Lubbock; and Graham Westerman of Lubbock.

She is survived by 1 Great Great Grandson, Wells Buehler of Frisco.

She will be remembered as a person who loved the Lord, who was kind, loyal, resilient, and unselfish. She will be dearly missed but never forgotten. Burial will be at Moore Funeral Home and Memory Garden, 1219 N Davis Drive, Arlington, Tx 76012.

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